Kukla's Korner Hockey

Kings’ GM Dean Lombardi tells the LA Times how assistant GM Ron Hextall helped him avoid an international incident with Konstantin Pushkarev:

“Hex is down there and I call him and I’m losing my patience,“Lombardi said. “I’m in Western Canada, waiting in this huge line to cross the border and I’m yelling into the phone, ‘Get [Pushkarev] out of here. I don’t want him around our players anymore.’
“I’m out of my car and I’m just screaming. The border guard is looking at me and wants to go through my trunk now. He was ready to frisk me, people are beeping their horns behind me and all I hear in my ear is Hex saying, ‘Calm down, I’ll take care of this.’ … I’m yelling at him, ‘He’s going to tell every other player to try to go somewhere else to get their way.’ Hex is just saying, ‘Trust me, Dean, I can get to this guy.’ These are the critical moments in the development of a player.”

Shot-blocking is not without risk. The league has been dotted this season with some significant injuries, most often to the feet, that were the result of blocked shots.

Tony Priolo, owner of Sportmask, the Toronto-based company that produces the protective headgear for Boston goalies Tim Thomas and Hannu Toivonen, figures he may have part of the answer. He’ll journey today to Buffalo, where he’ll hand his latest innovation to Bruins defenseman Andrew Alberts and Don Del Negro, now in his 14th season as the club’s trainer. Alberts is already wearing extra external protection on the insteps of both skates that he believes has significantly minimized his risk of injury.?”

continued...Priolo’s highly respected in the goaltending equipment industry for his high-end masks and customer service. I’d bet a toe that he’ll succeed.

When John Davidson took giant steps from the broadcast booth to the team president’s office, when he traded in a microphone for the most important desk in the Blues’ organization, it was natural to wonder if he’d make a successful transition.
We knew that Davidson could talk about a hockey team.
But could he actually run one with distinction?
Davidson had playing experience, yes. He knows the game. But the same things were said of Matt Millen, who went from All-Pro linebacker to network TV football analyst to president of the Detroit Lions. And in six seasons, the Lions are 24-72 under Millen. His leadership has provided little but a sequence of disasters.

• You’ve got to believe that Colorado fans are wondering what might have been during the 2003-04 season if Paul Kariya and Teemu Selanne had played that year to the level they are both reaching this season.
• Why do I persist in my notion that Jason Spezza could be an even better player than he is currently showing? He’s having a very decent season, but somehow I expected more from him by this point in his career.
• The ridiculous penalty parade persists. Every night I see guys barely touch another player and get whistled off for some imagined infraction. I know the NHL is trying to establish a standard, but sometimes it looks like a no-contact beer league out there.

It was instinct more than anything. Marian Hossa had just scored his third goal of the game Tuesday night against the Los Angeles Kings, a hat trick.
Eric Simpson did what any hockey fan raised in Ohio, within an hour of Detroit, would do. He spotted a hat and threw it on the ice. It’s a longtime hockey tradition, but, unfortunately, it wasn’t his hat.
His stepson, Chris Millar, was furious. Well, not immediately. His initial reaction?
“He was stunned,” Simpson said.
So Simpson tried to get Millar’s lucky hat back.

In this fast-paced, more exciting NHL, the Devils are … well … most often, neither of those things. And of course they’re not hard-hitting because everybody is too afraid to be hard hitting. Most importantly, the Devils have the opposition reverting into that Safety First mentality against them, which makes for very few end-to-end rushes or risky maneuvers. They have ruined my fun so far this season when I’ve gone to see the Sabres and Thrashers and Penguins—high-flying teams that ground themselves against the Devils.

Mike McCarron admits he had no idea how much hockey means to St. Michael’s College School, even though he played on the school team for five years in the 1970s….
“I knew it was prominent at St. Mike’s, but I had no idea how much until I got started looking into the archives and old photos,” said McCarron about what he found during his event preparation, which culminated on Jan. 13 with a day-long celebration. “It’s staggering….
One hundred and seventy St. Mike’s alumni eventually made their way to the NHL, of which 13 have been inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.

The race for the Art Ross Trophy (scoring leader) will go down to the last week of the season with Atlanta’s Marion Hossa making a big push to win it all down the stretch. Ottawa’s Dany Heatley will be chasing him, adding fuel to the debate as to which team got the better player in the big trade.
The race for the Rocket Richard Trophy (goal-scoring leader) will also go to the last week of the season with Dany Heatley, Martin St. Louis and Vinny Lecavalier all challenging Alexander Ovechkin who wins it as the Caps fall out of playoff contention and just start feeding their ace.

Greeting him in the locker room was his favorite player Martin Brodeur who showered him with Devils memorabilia including his very own hockey stick.
Born with a life-threatening heart deformation, Michael’s dream-turned reality was made possible by the New Jersey Chapter of the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
In addition to meeting Brodeur, Michael also chilled with Scott Gomez and Patrik Elias.